Achievement Standard
Subject Reference / Music 1.6Title / Demonstrate knowledge of two music works from contrasting contexts
Level / 1 / Credits / 6 / Assessment / Internal
Subfield / Music
Domain / Music Studies
Status / Registered / Status date / 17 December 2010
Planned review date / 31 December 2019 / Date version published / 20 November 2014
This achievement standard involves demonstrating knowledge of the musical elements and features of two music works from contrasting contexts.
Achievement Criteria
Achievement / Achievement with Merit / Achievement with Excellence- Demonstrate knowledge of two music works from contrasting contexts.
- Demonstrate breadth of knowledge of two music works from contrasting contexts.
- Demonstrate comprehensive knowledge of two music works from contrasting contexts.
Explanatory Notes
1This achievement standard is derived from TheNew Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media, Ministry of Education, 2007; Level 6 strands, Developing Practical Knowledge in Music - Sound Arts, Communicating and Interpreting in Music - Sound Arts, and Understanding the Arts in ContextMusic - Sound Arts, and is related to the material in the Teaching and Learning Guide for Music - Sound Arts, Ministry of Education, 2010 at
This standard is also derived from Te Marautanga o Aotearoa. For details of Te Marautanga o Aotearoa achievement objectives to which this standard relates, see the Papa Whakaako.
2Demonstrate knowledge involves identifying and describing the contexts in which two music works were composed or performed, and the musical elements and features of the works.
Demonstrate breadth of knowledge involves providing details of contexts, elements and features supported by explanations and/or musical examples.
Demonstrate comprehensive knowledge involves providing details of contexts, elements and features supported by insightful explanations and/or perceptive musical examples.
Contrasting contexts refer to the:
- historical, social and/or cultural contexts in which the work was composed and/or performed eg medieval, renaissance, baroque, classical, romantic, twentieth or twenty-first century ‘art’ music, popular, rock, jazz, musical theatre, music for film, music of the tangata whenua (traditional), music of other cultures
- composer(s) and/or performer(s) associated with the works
- purpose and/or function (eg commissioned works, film music, whakapapa (genealogical narrative)).
3Musical elements and features refer to:
- elements (eg timbre, texture, form)
- compositional devices (eg motif, riff, repetition, sequence)
- performance practices (eg articulation, call and response, improvisation)
- sound production technologies (eg delay, EQ, sound properties of acoustic instruments/taonga pūoro)
- notation/transmission conventions (eg graphic score, figured bass, jazz/rock chord symbols, oral narrative).
The score of at least one work must be analysed. Score refers to a conventionally notated score, lead sheet, TAB, or graphic notation.
4Evidence for assessment may take one or more of the following forms – written, static display, PowerPoint, seminar, annotated scores.
5Traditional forms of Māori music may be used for assessment against this standard.
6The assessment criteria must be applied to provide an overall judgment based on the weight of evidence across the study of both music works.
7Conditions of Assessment related to this achievement standard can be found at
Replacement Information
This achievement standard replaced unit standard 10660 and AS90017.
Quality Assurance
1Providers and Industry Training Organisations must have been granted consent to assess by NZQA before they can register credits from assessment against achievement standards.
2Organisations with consent to assess and Industry Training Organisations assessing against achievement standards must engage with the moderation system that applies to those achievement standards.
Consent and Moderation Requirements (CMR) reference / 0233 New Zealand Qualifications Authority 2018